Is This What A McDonald's "Chef" Says To Himself?

Published on by D. G. Hart

That’s the analogy that Kevin DeYoung and Ryan Kelly’s brief for the Gospel Coalition brought to mind. They begin by asking:

Should Christians who share many of the most important theological commitments partner across denominational lines for mutual support and collaborative ministry? Are there historical precedents for the kind of gospel networks we see flourishing in evangelicalism today? How do popular extra-ecclesial gospel partnerships work (or not work) in the current U.S. church scene?

They answer (oh the suspense), yes, and more helpings from the Gospel Coalition, please:

We have no desire to spend our days as apologists for man-made ministry acronyms. If every organization in this article disappeared tomorrow, the gospel would keep going out and Christ would keep building his church. The question is not whether any of these partnerships are essential. The question, at least for us, is whether they help to support what is essential. Do they serve the local church? Do they help pastors? Do they defend the truth? Do they preach the gospel? Do they get people into their Bibles? Do they provoke people to pursue holiness? Will someone who gets deeply involved with the conferences, the resources, the websites, the documents, and the teaching of these networks end up more committed to the church, more engaged with Scripture, more sure of what they believe, more precise with doctrine, more equipped for reaching the lost, more passionate about the nations, and more delighted with the glory of God in the face of Christ? If the answer is a yes—or even a qualified yes—then for our part we are eager to see these movements flourish and eager to partner with those similarly concerned for and similarly committed to the same gospel.

The problem here is whether “ministry” can really happen outside the church or the context of a worshiping community that has clear lines of responsibility among members and their officers. In other words, is it not possible for Kelly and DeYoung to see that an outfit like the Gospel Coalition provides a meal — it is real food, yes — but a fast-food version of it. People who eat at McDonald’s are not going to be healthy if that is all they eat. People who only eat at McDonald’s have only a commercial relationship — the sales staff at McDonald’s doesn’t know my name and pays me no visit to find out if I’m eating regularly at home. I could also easily take my fast-food eating elsewhere — say to Burger King (Together for the Gospel) or Wendy’s (Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals) or In-and-Out-Burger (White Horse Media). But if I dine elsewhere, what does it cost me or McDonald’s except for some kind of numerical or accounting? Plus, does the staff at McDonald’s ever teach me how to cook, what to look for in the food I buy, the value of exercise, or how to set up a kitchen?

No.

But who does? Well, my mother did, which may be why we call the church our mother. Pastors regularly provide a sumptuous feast every Lord’s Day and then come along side to see if I am eating at home. They also provide instruction on how to read the Bible (cook for myself). And best of all, pastors and I have a relationship cemented by vows. Those ties are not always pleasant, sometimes boring, and maybe not thrilling in the Passion Conference sense (which since we are in the ballpark of analogies must be similar to the thrills of X Men though I wouldn’t know never having submitted to the gimmicks of its special effects). But those relationships are substantial and sustaining.

What is troubling then about the folks who cook up gatherings like the Gospel Coalition is that they don’t seem to understand the difference between spiritual fast food and ministerial slow food. And they don’t even seem to sense that the conveniences of fast food may not be healthy for those eaters who already have the rich fare of a local and disciplined congregation. I mean, if Gospel Coalition was providing spiritual fast food for a nation of starved eaters, then maybe their menu is the best they can do. But that isn’t the case. In fact, as Kelly and DeYoung admit, the designers of TGC are already pastors in congregations and denominations where real ministry already happens, where Christians are truly fed and instructed. So why would they purposefully offer an inferior product? Or could it be that they believe their product is superior?

If so, I’d like to know when Tim Keller takes Kathy out for their anniversary if they go to Jack in the Box.

48 thoughts on “Is This What A McDonald's "Chef" Says To Himself?”

  2. I went through the “conference phase” for a while. It mirrored, not so coincidentally, a time when I was in a church where the faithful ministry of Word and Sacrament was not often evident.

    Now, it can take them or leave them, usually the latter. It may also be I’m getting older, crankier, more set in my ways, and less impressed by the hype.

    Like

  3. MB – “I went through the “conference phase” for a while. It mirrored, not so coincidentally, a time when I was in a church where the faithful ministry of Word and Sacrament was not often evident.”

    Ditto, and I think there is more here than many realize.

    KDY and TGC can state all they want about how TGC/T4G/etc. are not supposed to be replacements for the local church or denominational accountability, but when you are ambivalent about the sacraments for the sake of unity it breeds a culture where, funny enough, Sacrament-ambivalent churches have members who don’t realize anything is weird about only taking Supper on special occasions.

    Again and again, to give up the meaning of the Supper is to abdicate a significant tenet of being Reformed. To do that for the sake of “unity” is just bonkers.

    I disagree with every Lutheran I follow on Twitter about some aspect of the Sacraments, but it doesn’t mean I don’t support the spread of the Gospel because of being dis-unified.

    TGC is making denominational mountains into mole hills. It’s not trivia over which Reformed, Baptists, Lutherans, Anglicans, Methodists, etc. disagree. Quite the opposite, and they do a disservice to theology by relativizing them.

    Like

  4. There’s also a darker side to TGC that KDY and his pals won’t own up but that deserves attention.

    Kelly’s anecdotal comments that he’s never seen “gamesmanship” or the like from the TGC are laughably self-serving. I heard Trueman make comments on his podcast a while back, in light of the implosion of MH and Mark D., to the effect that he took serious heat from the Top Men a few years ago behind the scenes when he criticized what was going on up in Seattle. I don’t expect Trueman to name names or throw anyone under the bus, so I don’t think we’ll ever hear the full story. But he has infinitely more credibility in my eyes than any TGC lapdogs.

    These organizations remind me of the cool clique in high school that everyone desperately wanted to be a part of, except instead of pimply faced teenagers we’re talk about ministers of the gospel. How strange.

    Like

  5. I was pretty proud of the product I made when I was 15 and flipping burgers at Carl’s Jr.

    Pastors regularly provide a sumptuous feast every Lord’s Day and then come along side to see if I am eating at home. They also provide instruction on how to read the Bible (cook for myself). And best of all, pastors and I have a relationship cemented by vows…those relationships are substantial and sustaining.

    Nothing in TGC or whatever other thing this article is talking about appealed to me, personally. My father took me to promise keepers growing up, and I think it was then I knew I didn’t want anymore. I’ve had the benefit of a really good OPC (my first) when I was in college, kinda set the pattern for what I’ve come to expect on Sundays now as I continue on. Enough about me, very thought provoking post, making me look forward to a Subway sandwhich in about 30 minutes (emoticon).

    Like

  6. It is a brotherhood of sorts. Confrontation and exhortation have taken place when needed—sometimes privately, sometimes publicly. But it is not mistaken as some sort of extra-local church eldership. As a friend recently put it: when kids in the neighborhood form a clubhouse and get together, it does not mean that they have deserted or replaced their families.

    Uhh, Driscoll?

    You’re right, TGC is like a neighborhood kids’ clubhouse. So when we don’t take you seriously, don’t get upset.

    Like

  8. mboss, but the even more snicker inducing idea is in comparing these outfits to cool cliques. But earnest Reformed eeeevangelicalism is the Glee Club of Protestantism. As long as we’re drawing analogies…

    Like

  9. Nate – seconded.

    Zrim – touché. Guess it depends on who’s defining cool. If you’re talking about a PCA/SBC/Neo-Calvinist/Redeemer type, there’s a decent chance he thinks TGC/T4G/et al is the cat’s meow. Us OLer’s are just the guys in the back of class making wise cracks. To your point, however, considering their relative lack of standing in the Protestant world at large (and lack of awareness of that fact), maybe hall monitor is another apt analogy.

    Like

  10. mboss, then again as everyone knows once cool is defined it’s uncool to be found there. My daughters tell me that the Book of Faces is so 2009, and the reason is that parents started using it and making it lame-o (like when your folks came down to the basement and tried joining in). Maybe TGC is to Protestantism what the parents are to the Book of Faces.

    Like

  12. All you poor lost souls simply need to join the OPC, where our biggest problem is keeping that wiley ICRC in line (as if). We could use all the help we can get, yo.

    Like

  14. CW, I like how they identify the deleterious opportunity(vritual elders and church) and conclude that that isn’t who they are or what they do. Akin to the Freudian slip or Bormann taking the Judge’s seat at Nuremberg. Hey, look, they exonerated themselves. Shocking. Never woulda thought it would go that way. Anybody, and I mean, ANYBODY in the PCA and not perpetually high or drunk, and even then, knows that the TGC functions EXACTLY like a virtual elder board and ecclesiastical structure. DeYoung is in dire need of a laxative. And after that article, he might want to consider a colonoscopy and a tub.

    Like

  15. @Sean & DgH & JASitek

    . Anybody, and I mean, ANYBODY in the PCA and not perpetually high or drunk, and even then, knows that the TGC functions EXACTLY like a virtual elder board and ecclesiastical structure.

    OK so assume that’s true. That means large numbers of Baptists and PCAers (say 10k+) have decided they want Mohler, DeYoung, MacArthur, Platt… as their virtual GA. They like an explicitly 4-5 point reformed baptist faith. They have their own church creed: http://t4g.org/about/affirmations-and-denials-2/

    And that means things outside the creed are secondary issues. So for example they believe in the Piper compromise on baptism. OK so they are just another quasi denomination evolving into a full denomination (in the Baptist sense). Financially they are organized not like a state church-lite but rather in more of a American century style where local churches are like stores purchasing religious guidance from one or more distributors like t4g. OK let’s assume that’s all true. Then…

    Like

  18. Going from the Ramen of Fundamentalism or free will Evangelicalism to the OPC lobster may be too much. The Big Mac may sit a little better in the stomach. A new franchise is opening in an area near you! Besides, finding fresh lobster in ones local neighborhood is so rare.

    Like

  19. KDY: Should Christians who share many of the most important theological commitments partner across denominational lines for mutual support and collaborative ministry? Are there historical precedents for the kind of gospel networks we see flourishing in evangelicalism today? How do popular extra-ecclesial gospel partnerships work (or not work) in the current U.S. church scene? This article seeks to answer such questions, using Together for the Gospel and The Gospel Coalition as primary test-cases, and arguing that the dangers common to these kinds of non-denominational movements should not lead one to minimize the gospel-defining, gospel-promoting, and gospel-celebrating work they do.

    And that’s where the line is crossed. He is literally saying that T4G and TGC have the authority to contradict ecclesial courts (who have already defined the gospel). He probably doesn’t mean it, but that’s what the words say.

    Like

  20. Jeff,

    It’s a good thing that we have TGCs self-appointed, self-policing council to define what the gospel is.

    Like

  21. What doesn’t make sense is that any Presby from a confessional denom (Tim & Lig) feels the need for this. KDY (RCA) and denominationally- and doctrinally-impoverished baptists, maybe. But TGC is really just enabling or confirming their actual or de facto independence.

    Like

  24. Besides, finding fresh lobster in ones local neighborhood is so rare.

    People just need to take that leap of faith and try to open their own Red Lobster. We have been at it a year, quite simply amazing what the Lord has done for Providence Presbyterian Church. The OPC ain’t without her faults, but I feel there is a real hungering for steak and lobster. Don’t be afraid to step out and see what the Lord will do is all..Yo…

    Like

  25. @Jeff

    And that’s where the line is crossed. He is literally saying that T4G and TGC have the authority to contradict ecclesial courts (who have already defined the gospel). He probably doesn’t mean it, but that’s what the words say.

    Actually I would suspect he does mean it. This same argument came up in the 19th century and in the English speaking world flared up during 1950s regarding para-church bible translation. A bible translation committee has to make innumerable theological choices when constructing a Christian bible translation. As bible were translated into new languages denominations argued that charities that were doing this work in being non-denominational were effectively unaccountable. In the English speaking world they are the norm. I’ve noticed when you quote the bible you use a bible that came from the ESV Advisory Council whose oversight is Crossways a non-denominational corporation, not a denominational translation.

    The PCUSA (among other churches) has recently tried to take back authority directly to the churches with the CEB. The idea was that a common group of translators would do expert work but that churches would have study committees vetting the translation as it went. Sort of the best of both worlds. Neither the PCA nor OPC has been supportive.

    For most congregationalists (especially Baptists), since there aren’t meaningfully denominations anyway there are used to relying on parachurch organization to provide the services one would normally get from a denomination. The PCA with only a few hundred thousand members has trouble providing the rich collection of services that a denomination would normally provide. It is in keeping with USA culture to “outsource” and consolidate services under service providers. Denominations became a layering of services.

    So yes, I think he does mean it. Ultimately I suspect he believes that the broader church not particular denominations should define the gospel.

    Like

  26. Nate, I knew that — or at least that it was in process. But he was an RCA outlier when he first started with TGC — a refugee of sorts. Some cranks would say there’s not much difference in ethos between the TGC and the PCA in crowd now.

    Like

  27. Very kierkegaardian of you ABs… I like it. Extending the metaphor to Red Lobster may not have been a good idea. This business unit of Darden has been suffering quite a bit lately.

    Like

  29. CD-Host,

    I would agree with you on that – I think that was par-excellence what The Gospel Coalition set out to do. They wanted to define and set the standard for what the Gospel is for the broader Evangelical world. This in itself isn’t necessarily a bad thing, per-se (I actually think their clarification of what the Gospel is has been a good thing for the Christian world) but their efforts into everything else has been an overstepping into what a church/denomination ought to be doing.

    I don’t see anything particularly wrong with Baptists, Presbyterians, Anglicans, etc. arriving at a consensus on what the Gospel is – it can be a helpful thing (so long as that definition is actually what the bible teaches, which as far as I can tell, concerning the Gospel, it is) for churches and I think this is what DeYoung’s article tries to show in some sense.

    If they simply returned to a fuller articulation of what the Gospel is and wanted to defend that as well as include competing voices in the “Broader Reformed World” (the TGC isn’t as “broad” as they think they are) as to how we ought to articulate the Gospel (the whole Law/Gospel issue immediately comes to mind) then I would welcome that. But the more they assert themselves into every cotton-picking aspect of human endeavor, the more they lose the Gospel and step into the areas in which the Church ought to function.

    My two cents…

    Like

  31. Igs, you got me. Follow my comments here if you are looking for more (see, I can pull a Bryan Cross parachute string when stumped – and I’m not a super computer!!)

    Why is Redeemer PCA, NYC, not in the Gospel Coalition’s Church Directory?

    Because TKNY is a brand and the Coalition is only an outlet…

    This points to another curious feature of Tim Keller’s status in the Presbyterian and evangelical worlds. Part of the point I tried to make in Engaging with Keller was that he does not fit in with the rules or expectations of his Presbyterian communion. It appears the same is true of the Gospel Coalition. That would seem to put Keller in John Wesley territory where the world is his parish.

    Fore. And thanks for letting me dovetail on your fun analogy.

    Like

  33. Igs – I’ll look into it, thx. I’m a simple man who attends the OPC and finds himself somehow ordained in the same. If you feel like golfing when out in Nor Cal, tweet tweet. Lates.

    Like

  35. Thx, Mr. Hat (**chuckle..), Mr. Unificator. Darryl’s essay was the only one I read in Engaging Keller. It’s worth it (anyone lurking, you should buy (there you go Darryl, send me my cut of the royalties for all these ads, yo)). It actually brought to mind some of my own thoughts when I was introduced to Keller in deacon training class. I’ll say no more, I like to read others words than my own. Peace out.

    Like

  36. “Are there historical precedents for the kind of gospel networks we see flourishing in evangelicalism today? ”

    Who wants to just be “doing well” when you could be “flourishing”?

    Like

  37. “But that isn’t the case. In fact, as Kelly and DeYoung admit, the designers of TGC are already pastors in congregations and denominations where real ministry already happens, where Christians are truly fed and instructed. So why would they purposefully offer an inferior product? Or could it be that they believe their product is superior?”

    Or we might ask why they have time.

    Like

  40. Igs,

    PS

    Always have wondered about that moniker. Share here or PM me with the scoop. Or not. Take care, and don’t forget Shomer Shabbos.

    Like

  41. Darryl, should we assume by your analogy that you have never, ever eaten at a McDonalds, and that you have only ever eaten at your mother’s kitchen table?

    Speaking for myself, I assure you I eat at home regularly, frequently, and abundantly (literally and ecclesiastically). I occasionally also sneak a few greasy french fries — whether through a drive-thru or a theological website (some greasier than others).

    What is oldlife.org, brother? It’s certainly not mama’s kitchen table! But I guess it’s okay, because it’s a smaller drive-thru.

    Like

  42. Any brother of Darryl’s is a brother of mine..

    Ryan,

    Welcome. I would encourage you to read this post as well as 101, which is linked within that article. If you like to lurk like I do, then you’ll understand why I won’t be posting any more on this thread. Coincidentally, I was driving to work this morning thinking about this post and had the same thought you raise. Glad you said it, not me. I’m out, take care.

    Like

  43. Ryan, I think most people who read Old Life won’t mistake it for Calvin’s Institutes. Is that what Gospel Coalition tries to do — take the spotlight off TKNY and Piper and turn it to something less greasy?

    Like

  47. abs- The Bible Code folk are always interesting. Francis will disband the papacy next year. One of the signs of the coming end of the papacy is that Bryan’s brain will produce an infinite loop of logical fallacies.

    Like

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.